Three of us had a great tour this summer. It was warm, so they flew with the doors off, giving us an unobstructed view. From Schaumburg,we flew to roughly where the highways 290, 294 and 88 meet, then followed the Eisenhower expressway east to downtown. We flew south to McCormick convention center, then flew up the shoreline, past Grant park and Navy Pier. Over Lincoln Park we headed inland, passing over Wriggly Field before heading south, back to the Eisenhower, which we followed back west, retracing our original path. Total flight time was around 45 minutes, which is much longer than a tour from a downtown heliport.
As we were getting briefed initially, we were asked if we wanted mild or extreme. We answered extreme, and we found out what that meant when we neared the airport on our return. The pilot made a series of extreme banks (90 degrees?, and remember, no doors). One of our party thought it was great, the other was not so happy.
The helicopter is the smaller 4-person model. The pilot determines who sits where for weight distribution. You get the best view of the sights on the left side.
Somehow, we missed the warning to bring a light jacket and you may want to wear long pants With the doors off, it gets windy. Imagine riding down the highway at 100 mph in a car with no doors, and you get the idea; remember, though, that you are at altitude, and it is cooler than ground level. We didn't have any jackets, but it was warm enough that the trip was tolerable. However, a jacket would have made it more comfortable, and I was glad I wore jeans.
You will be warned not to bring anything that could fall out of the open door, hit the rear rotor and cause a crash. Lock in your car anything you don't absolutely need . They don't want camera bags (too many loose items). If you bring a camera, make sure it has a wrist strap.
We enjoyed the flight, and I recommend it. read more
